My workout time is early morning - pretty much right after I get out of bed - so I do not eat before my workout. Some people choose to have a pre-workout drink to enhance performance, muscle growth, energy and endurance, however, before you begin a regimen including a pre-workout drink, talk to a trainer or your doctor first.
If you don't exercise right after waking, you will want to fuel your body with something about an hour before you workout. Some suggestions:
- small size energy bar
- banana/natural peanut butter on 1/2 slice whole grain bread
- 1/2 cup cottage cheese or Greek yogurt with berries
- 3/4 cup whole grain cereal with almond or skim milk
- 1/2 protein shake (have the other half within an hour after the workout)
- a handful of almonds or a natural trail mix
These snacks will help give you the energy you need to get through your workout. I advise against just drinking a cup of coffee and then heading to your workout an hour or so later. You need some sort of nutrition to fuel your body.
If your workout is much later in the day, eat your meals and snacks at regular intervals, timing them so that your last snack or meal is about one hour before your workout.
What to have after a workout? Well, if your workout involved a lot of strength training and weights, a recovery drink within 30 minutes is a good idea to help your muscles recover quicker. Many sporting goods or GNC stores sell various drinks; I use the one sold by Beachbody*, created in conjunction with P90X. Some athletes drink 8oz of lowfat chocolate milk to aid their muscles in recovering. Of course, not every workout demands a recovery drink - you might just need a good snack such as:
- Protein Bar - Look for natural bars with around 200 calories, low sugar & 15+ grams of protein
- Kashi® Granola Bars – lots of varieties
- Cheese stick and apple
- Homemade Trail mix or a natural kind from the store
- Almonds & an orange
- Protein Shake
- Handful of almonds or other nut & some berries
Keeping your body fueled will help it work in conjunction with your exercise program. If you are trying to lose weight, you want your metabolism to keep working all day long so you have to fuel your body all day. If you go more than 2.5-3 hours without eating, your metabolism slows, "conserving" whatever it has left from your last meal. Keep that metabolism revved up by eating good foods all day.
Tomorrow I'll list some additional snack ideas - not necessarily for pre- or post-workout, but general snacks for you to keep handy during your day.
*to learn more about the P90X recovery drink, go to www.teambeachbody.com/jenniemann and click on "Shop" then "Nutrition & Supplements".
No comments:
Post a Comment